Friday, January 06, 2006

We're back!

And we're all sick. Except Bill, who hasn't gotten it yet, but he will eventually. Right now he's home from work, taking care of the rest of us. Sydney had a 104 degree fever yesterday and looked like she was on the brink of death. Owen wasn't much better and we confirmed w/ the doctor this morning that he has another ear infection. It has been hard to get anything done on our return home because both the kids want to be held all the time. Owen even insists on being held and rocked most of the night, although last night I figured out that if I propped him up on some pillows so he wasn't totally flat, he was able to get some relief. Despite all of this, the kids were fine on the flight home yesterday. Go figure.

We had another fun surprise waiting for us when we got home. Last week before we left, Bill noticed a musty smell in the corner of the basement. He figured water was seeping in someplace and we might have some mold growing down there. When we walked into the house yesterday, the smell was really strong in the living room and almost unbearable in the basement. I thought it smelled like something had died and sent Bill down to the basement to look for a dead rat. He opened up the little door to the crawlspace and heard something growl. He shined the flashlight around and slammed the trap door shut as soon as he realized that there was a big old raccoon staring back at him! Apparently the front of our porch has an opening between the wall and the foundation which is screened off except for one spot. This is where our new pet crawled through and made himself at home. Boy, are raccoons stinky! We've now got a live trap set up so we can catch him and haul him away. Then we need to seal off the hole somehow and clean and disinfect the crawlspace. In the meantime, the whole house reeks of raccoon crap. Lovely!

Other than the illness and pestilence waiting for us on our return home, we had a great vacation in the frozen midwest. Here are a couple of lovely pics of the view from my mom's house in Duluth. These are taken out the front windows. They have a bunch of rocking chairs facing out towards the view, and one of my favorite things to do is sit and rock, watch the big ships go in and out of the harbor, and drink some coffee/tea/cocoa. And of course knit. Here are some pics of what I got accomplished (all pleasure knitting, BTW):Whitby from Knitting On The Road knit in Artyarns Supermerino. I love this yarn and these socks. They are so yummy on the feet and as soft as the yarn is in the hank, it's even softer once it's been washed.

And here are the shorty socks I made out of one of the hanks of No No Kitty Kona. I ended up having quite a bit left over, so I could've made them a little longer. I like short socks, though, so these worked out just fine. I think I'm going to make a pair of fingerless gloves or mitts out of the green hank.

Finally, I had some good news on the designing front. I got an e-mail from Cast-On (the TKGA mag), and they want to buy one of my designs for the summer issue. Not only that, they want a one-page article to go along with it! Yahoo! Then, when I got home, I had a message from another publisher who is putting out a couple of books this summer and she wanted to buy a couple designs as well. I'm also going to start self-publishing soon, hopefully within the next few months. I'll have patterns for sale over on my business site. I'm also starting an e-mail newsletter to announce new patterns and talk about general knitting stuff, so join up, why don't you!

Glad you're back - we missed you!! Happy to hear the trip was good (loved the pictures), but sorry about the big racoon and bad germs. Are you sick too - or just the kids? Love your socks, looks like you had some quality knitting time. Great news about all your submissions, and I love you business site. The New Year is bringing great things for you.

Eeewww, germs and pestilence! Glad you're back though. Great news about designs. You are in demand now, baby. Love the Whitby's. My 2nd Whitby is about 5 repeats from being done. Can't wait to wear them.

So sorry to hear you have all been sick. And the raccoon. . . although, ultimately, he's probably easier to get rid of than mold.And, how about the designing gigs taking off like wildfire???? Wow, lady! Congratulations.

About Me

Welcome to the wild & wooly world of knitwear designer Chrissy Gardiner. I'm a mom of two who spends as much time as possible knitting and designing knitting patterns. I have been published in various books and magazines as well as printing my own pattern line, Gardiner Yarn Works. I published my first book, Toe-Up!, in the summer of 2009. It's about socks, of course!